John O’Halloran of Wadaiko Newark brought an array of Taiko drums to Maker Faire bay Area 2011, upon which music was played for the duration of the event. Each drum is built from reclaimed wine barrels and each Taiko drumming student is invited to participate in the construction process of their drums before playing them.

In addition to being an online editor for MAKE Magazine, Michael Colombo works in fabrication, electronics, sound design, music production and performance (Yes. All that.) In the past he has also been a childrens’ educator and entertainer, and holds a Masters degree from NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program.

We made a set of these when I was in high school for an indoor marching band drum competition using the exact same materials the sound from them was great, you definitely knew that it was a taiko drum when it was hit.